Fragments
by Trans
Summary: He thought it was over, but your heart can never forget love. When two people are truly meant for each other then fate will pull the strings. The only problem is how much can their love endure before it breaks?
1. midnight serenade

**Fragments**

**Warning: **Only so graphic descriptions, and some sexual innuendos.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho.

**Author's notes:** This story I'll straying from my normal style. I'm kind of experimenting with myself so humor my with advice and reviews!

**Chapter 1 Midnight Serenade**

Dreams had forsaken me this night. Replacing them where half cast thoughts, and uneasiness. It was unlike me to place worries on events yet to transpire, but Youko spirits- being just that- spirits in a corporeal form are always closer to the transparent world than others. This awkward doom to settle in my stomach was not one to be brushed off.

I closed my eyes, and inhaled a calming breath to clear myself of any such thoughts. To be on guard; yes, but to dwell; no. The cool air rushed through my lungs at a slow pace. On my tongue I could taste the moisture, thick because of the rolling storm outside.

Serenading droplets rang through the Makai treetops, wind chimes of the fragile sort. I liked to hear them falling wherever the gusts of air took them. They knew their destiny, and took it without complaint. To fall, be reborn, only to fall again. They took no shame in it.

My den was well guarded by my killer plants, and I relished the moment of peace I felt. Everything was so simple. Listening to the rain, warm in the heat created by my rasping lilies, and knowing my partner was sleeping soundly besides me.

My body shifted slowly as to not disturb said demon. Facing him my gaze could lingerer at its own tempo. Blue shadows caressed the ridge of his jaw, and gathered in the edges of his collarbone. He appears almost as if fine sapphire powder has been sprinkled over his skin.

His lashes flutter against dusted cheeks. I'm entranced. This habit of mine has no logic, and will not be quelled by reason. He looks as beautiful as the treasures I steal every day. And despite the fact that I have been caught many times, I still indulge myself, while planning to deny it later. My eyes glow a mellower gold while sweeping over his finely shaped face. Only when my eyes catch the slope of his neatly folded wings do I glance away.

Obsidian strands of rebellious hair hang free of his ponytail, draping over his bare shoulders like dark vines on a trellis. His bangs -which are usually hidden under that silly hat of his- are curled just over his brow. The longer I stare...the more details I seem to notice; the birth mark on his shoulder and the way his pendant glows bleeding and bright even in the late night.

Its resting-place is right above his heart, the silver freshly polished, and gleaming teasingly. It is his joy. Just another puzzle piece to his character.

Every detail feels so important. I find myself memorizing it with an indescribable fervor. An imprinted image to stay with me forever. The low hum of his ki, his skin pressed to mine, and that problem less expression he wears when he sleeps. Its rare for demons to wear such an expression.

His right eye crinkles when a wisp of hair tickles his nose. Before I can stop myself, slender fingers brush the offending strands away.

"I've caught you..." purple eyes open lazily, and he smirks at my soft glare. "You were watching me sleep again."

"A fox ensnared in a rabbit's trap? Never."

A chuckle erupts deep in his throat. More strands of his hair fall over his face. "Deny it all you want."

"Then I will."

For a second we look intently at each other. A boom of thunder echoes through the cavern walls. He winks. "Is is you need no sleep, or you can get no sleep?"

My head tilts so my cheek presses deeper into the pillow we share. My silvery bangs hang over my eyes, but I can still see the playful smile on his lips. "Sleep...seems to have eluded me tonight."

He doesn't mock me like usual, only moves closer, and rests his head on my muscled chest. Silence envelops us again, and I start to memorize the rhythm of his breathing. My attuned ears shut out even the music of the rain, until nothing is left but us. I don't want to think about tomorrow or yesterday.

"What if the rain continues into tomorrow. A rainstorm this size could last up to a month." I barely hold back a growl as he plunders my happy little moment.

"We've done heists in the rain before."

"So we have." I'm glad he agrees so quickly. Perhaps he can sense my lack of interest on the subject?

My eyes drift shut, but all I see is that picturesque copy of him burned into my retinas. There is a mysterious allure to the Chimera.

My fingers creep down into his hair, just barely making contact with his scalp. I can feel his head tilt up to look up at me, but I refused to open my eyes.

A finger traces the curve of my cheek slowly, before pulling my face down to nestle, in what I recognize as the nook of his neck. Strong arms encircle me, followed by two large leathery wings. They are smooth where they caress my skin. His scent is strong here, lulling me into a limbo between conscious ness and dreams. This is our own little cocoon of silken sensations.

Finally I relax in his hold, and my thoughts drift off into the hazy darkness of nothing.

The rain has stopped. An omen of good fortune? A trick that fate is trying to play? We pay no heed to the reason, only proceed with our plan. Our band of thieves is waiting for us in the deepest parts of my territory, and I am eager to return to them.

We run faster, weaving in and out of the tall bamboos stocks. My steps are almost playful like when I used to frolic as a kit. I can no longer see Kuronue, and I know he can not see me, but we can _feel _each other. Stealth is of utmost importance, and we mask our Ki as soon as we approach our destination.

Suddenly he is right by my side, like he never left, and we stop crouching by the north entrance. Lord Hibushki's castle is a fortress. At the slightest sign of a security breach hundreds of minion youki will be on us in seconds. We both already know this. Our plan has been gone over more than enough times.

We turn to look at each other. Our eyes meet, and signals instantly fly between us. It is a silent language, only spoken by us, and untouchable by others.

There is a window two floors up that has only a week ward protecting it. That is where we enter. A few other protection spells safeguard Lord Hibushki's prized possessions, but thieves of our stature can easily deal with them. Really he should feel honored that we regarded his things as worthy of attention.

First we enter the main chamber full of jewels, and kimonos of the richest value. Gold trinkets, and magical text lay about, and we smoothly glide around them like phantoms.

Just like planned we ignore these things. After all we have plenty of _that _in stock. What we want is in a side chamber, that's entrance is indistinguishable from the wall that surrounds it.

Word of mouth, through reliable sources, has told us as much of a valuable artifact inside. Kuronue has always been quite enamored with magical artifacts. I myself am more pleased with items with aesthetic beauty.

My palms slide over the smooth marble bricks searching for the minor indicator I need. Stone after stone passes beneath my skin before I find what I'm looking for. Warm prickling. Its like static shocking your very cells. I blink slowly at the intoxicating feeling. Most demons would feel pain...but instead my adrenaline sky rockets. My favorite part about stealing is the art of breaking carefully paced wards. There is no other feeling like you energy strangling the small bit off magic within. To feel it wriggle in you grasps, suffocating to dwindling embers, and then finally breaking.

Kuronue's hand brushes my shoulder blade, and I know he can feel my excitement. I smirk, at how easily I am able to overcome the small bit of magic that is supposed to protect these prized treasures.

A section of the wall swings open, and we walk in cautiously. There could still be extra booby traps set, but I can detect none, and a movement to my right signals that Kuronue can't either.

This chamber is as dark as the other, but the air is dustier. It is apparent that no one has entered this room in many years. Then no one should miss what is inside right?

My hand snaps quickly to my hair, and I withdraw a seed which grows into a small lantern flower to light a small path for us. We need to be quick now. The usual fun that accompanied a heist was waning quickly for me, and a pressure was nagging at the back of my skull. Something was off. We had to move fast.

My eyes traced Kuronue's smooth amethyst one's and I made sure he understood my uneasiness. Moving ahead of me he started to search the piles of random objects looking for this thing that had piqued his interest for months.

He ducks behind one shelf, and comes back up holding what appears to be a golden tray. I would have said that it looked just like any other ordinary thing, except that the golden surfaces shined like it was freshly polished, even though everything else around us was collecting dust. I could almost feel the power hidden in the seemingly average platter.

"Time to go," I breathed.

Just as we came. Shadows sneaking amongst shadows. Up out of the protected chambers, and then, this time out of the northern entrance. The ward would not prevent exiting as it did entering, so we did not need to leave out of the window we came.

We were readily approaching freedom, but the foreboding in my stomach tightened, and only then did I realize our slip up. Our power was masked, but the platter itself...was giving off signals. As soon as we left the warded treasure chamber they were alerted that something was afoul.

Quickly I grabbed the tray from Kuronue's grasps, and tried to mask the energy with my own, but the signature was odd, and I failed miserably. It was time to leave.

I started running, and Kuronue followed my lead. Just as we cleared the exit hundreds of guards started their pursuit. Luckily if we went fast enough we could definitely out run them, and we could hide out at my den for a day or so before we headed back to my territory.

The chase was exhilarating in its own nerve-wracking way. The wind whipping through your hair, you blood pumping faster to get more oxygen, and the hate you can feel radiating from those you have fooled.

Side by side our strides lengthened, and I was starting to feel safe when a snap reached my ears. It wasn't the usual crack of bamboo splintering, or the pressure of our feet on the under brush but metal separating.

Fine chain links forced to break apart. Kuronue's pendant cascaded off his neck with one last shine of ruby before falling behind on the forest floor. I wish he would leave it, but I knew better.

His step springs backwards, and he blindly runs to retrieve it. "Don't Kuronue!" I shout at his already retreating back.

"No. I need it!" His voice is desperate, mirroring the quick calculations running through my head. If he can grab it now we might still be able to escape in time...

"AHHHHH!" His hand is within a hair's breath of his precious heirloom when a punji trap springs up around him.

"Kuronue!" I shout. My breath is coming in short gasps. My eyes widen, transfixed on the bloody horror before me. Crimson red spilling out onto his pale skin, seeping into his shirt, blood everywhere. His life force...it is plummeting. I can feel the army of youki drawing ever closer, but I can't move. My legs are bound to the earthy ground. I have to help him!

My demon instinct hold me back. It is too late for him, and soon it will be for me too if I don't leave... My chest tightens at the very thought of what I need to do.

"Forget about me Kurama! Go! Run!" A demon sacrificing his own well being for my benefit...its beyond our nature, but in this moment the truth in his worry for me feels almost natural.

So I turn and run. Run. Run far away. Soon I'm speeding out of control. I don't know where I am, or where I'm headed too, only that the trees are passing faster and faster. My heart might beat out of my chest, and I wouldn't stop. No this grief to stab into my heart must be dealt with. I refuse to wear it on my sleeve. This weakness to fester in my heart will remain within where I can find my own way to cope with it.

minutes pass by, then Hours, and I'm still running. The rain begins again. It pelts relentlessly on my skin, drenching my clothes, and chilling me to the very marrow in my bones.

I cherish how it drowns out all my chaotic thoughts. The scenery becomes a blur to me. Blues, greens, and browns swirling into darkened grays and blacks. Oh the water is so cold! _"Forget about me Kurama! Go! Run!" _I must keep running. Never stop. Never stop running.

My eyes open at their own lingering pace. The first thing I see is the ceiling looming overhead. I'm afraid to close them again...no more sleep will be sought tonight.

My blankets are twisted around my shivering form, damp with perspiration. My hand moves up to brush away some of the strands of my scarlet hair that are sticking to my forehead.

Another boom crashes outside along with a torrent of rain that berates my window pain like liquid bullets. They smear down in blurry lines. I watch their decent for a moment while my body calms itself.

My eye-lids sag, and I can see that picture of Kuronue sleeping peacefully there just like always at my beck and call. _This _is how I want to remember him. Although...I've never run faster...

I ran.

I never stopped running.

Now look I even out ran death.

I wonder if Kuronue would be proud of me? Or would he think of me a coward? I live with humans, but here at least I no longer need to run. For years I felt lost after his death. Now I can finally rest at ease, only now I must run from the memories...don't I? Only with so many years of life to haunt me...that is a feat I'll never surpass.

I shouldn't have ran.

He was always a baka anyway. Why did I listen? Now I can't stop. I should have never began. There might have been hope for him, but I abandoned him didn't I? _"Forget about me Kurama! Go! Run!" _No! I won't run. I can't run anymore. The past has chased me long enough. No more running...I'll never run again.

This is just another night...filled with more dreams of him.

I straighten my sheets, and lay my head back down into the soft fabric of my pillow. No...I cannot inflict myself with pain over something that already is. My past...I may not be proud of it, but that was who I was then. And this is how I am now. I have no regrets.

Maybe some events are integral to form the person we are today. What if he never died? Would I have made so many of the mistakes I made after that? Would I ever gotten myself entangled with that hunter? I might not have even come to Ningenkai...

My mother, Yusuke, Hiei, Kuwabara, and the others... I don't know if I would trade it for him. No, that is not an option, and there is no point in putting myself through that choice. It was meant to happen this way...or it wouldn't have occurred.

My fingers run up my side lock, and weave into just behind my bangs. From there I pull out a small oval seed. With a little bit of energy a small crack forms in its shell. Green wriggles our in one long little sprout. The sprout grows, branching, forming one singular stem with two leaves. A bud forms, then opens, revealing bright orange petals. Red tangoing with neon, and crackling bolts of alabaster.

A fire rose...An invention on Kuronue's part. He did so poorly with plants, but he tried to get himself acclimated to please me. This one was a by product of his attempt gone aerie. The cross-breed was not stronger-in fact it was weaker- but I kept it anyway. Such beautiful colors could only be created by mistake after all. It was impossible to recreate, and impossible to cast aside, although I must admit there have been many moments filled with anger that I almost did so. Besides I like having something that is one of a kind.

I palm the flower to my cheek, the velvety petals tickling my skin. The rain drums to the beat of a new serenade. This is my new life, still clinging to the old. And me? I have no regrets.


	2. antiquities

**Fragments**

**Warning: **Only some graphic descriptions, and some sexual innuendos.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho.

**Author's notes:** This story I'll be straying from my normal style. I'm kind of experimenting with myself so humor me with advice and reviews!

**Chapter 2 Antiquities**

School ended uneventfully. A few of my more avid admirers insisted on following me for a few blocks on my walk home. Only today that was not my destination. Saturday brought my school week to a close, and there was no need to rush home. (1)

Instead I headed the other direction, towards the guts of the city, and finally shook off the last of my stalkers. My feet took me to my destination without any conscious guidance, and soon I arrived to the small antique shop that persistently held my interest.

It was small, cluttered (a bit to my irritation), and full of many acquired heir looms and old things waiting to be sold. The shop used to belong to a fat man with beady eyes. He was extremely cold to all his customers, and was always charging them twice the worth of their purchases. I felt no remorse from snatching anything to catch my eye, from right under his fat nose.

About six months ago the man was taken in by the authorities for some shady trading, perhaps under the table drug dealing, after all it would be easier to sneak drugs over the border under the guise of an antique.

His daughter, although not on very good terms with the man, took over to save the business. Tsuru was in her late twenties, and very sweet. I noticed right away her lack of experience and offered to help in any way I could. Extremely grateful she gives me discounts for helping her appraise inventory. At first she doubted my accuracy, but I'm always right. After many years of stealing valuables I could evaluate anything...no matter how obscure.

I no longer steal from the shop, although it can be very tempting, but if I do show a great interest in a particular item she is always glad to give it to me free of charge or at least discounted.

It was fun to hide away in the shop for a couple of hours whenever I had time to spare, and shift through all the odds and ends. Tsuru is pleasant company. She had long passed the immature girl faze, and never gives me anything but friendly smiles.

After I enter I walk behind the counter and straight into the back room. I set my bag down here, and call out, "Tsuru where are you?"

"Shuuichi? I'm dusting the bookshelves!" Her voice is muffled at the end as she coughs on inhaled dust.

"Would you like any assistance?" I ask when I locate her. She is wearing jeans and a plain blouse. Her indigo hair (dyed of course) is held back in a low pony tail. She eyes me, but shakes her head.

"No, I feel more like taking a break. Care for a cup of tea?"

"That sounds nice, Thank you."

We head to the back room, and she turns on her tea maker, and sits down exhaustedly on the worn loveseat pushed against the wall. I sit next to her a bit more gracefully than her tired flop.

"A long day I take it?"

"I just got a shipment that my dad made before he left me the business. The police only now handed it over after concluding that nothing was illegal about it. Some of the things...I have no idea what they even are! It took forever for me to catalog them." She rubs her temples annoyed.

"Anything that might interest me?" I figured that there would be a few things she'd be eager to get my opinion on. She'd already received one other delivery similar to this one. The last was full of voodoo statues, and other magic talismans.

"Actually...most of it was just like what I got last time, how I'm going to sell it in a conservative neighborhood like this one...however there was something." Tsuru stands up, and walks over to the back door where the now empty crate is hidden away with straw littering the floor. "I don't think I'll be able to sell this thing, and I couldn't recognize the language, but you like that mysterious stuff so I figured you might want it. Free of course, but you have to help me with book keeping tomorrow."

The tea maker beeps, and I get up to pour us a cup each. When I return to the couch she hands me a small bamboo box. I take a sip of my tea thoughtfully, examining the intricate carvings on the sides. The gulp of herbal liquid prevents me from gasping.

The language carved on the side...its an ancient language from Makai used for spells and wards...

"You said this came in the shipment with the rest of the items? Was anything else unusual?" I ask careful to keep any excitement out of my voice.

"You mean with those funky symbols on it? No. Why? Can you read it?" She is peering at me, but I keep my eyes trained on the aged and splintering bamboo. The artifact isn't beautiful...but the fact that it is from Makai is enough for me to keep it.

"No I can't, but you are right. It is very interesting." I stow the peculiar find away in my book bag, and steer the conversation another direction. "So have you found out why your father was ordering such things before he was detained?"

"No. I don't even know who the original dealer is, so if there are anymore shipments I can't cancel them. I am starting to wonder what he was doing...it had to be more than drug smuggling, but the police seem to think that they have enough evidence to put him away for quite a while. Really I don't feel to bad about it."

"Hm, well I really have no say in that matter. I never knew him very well. He wasn't nearly as kind as you are so I never exchanged more than the customary greeting with him."

"Yeah well I'm his daughter, and I didn't get much more than that either." She sounds sour, and she drains the last of her tea, and then forces a small smile. Her teeth are white from bleaching strips. "How about helping me with the display cases now?"

---

As I left the shop I felt like doing something spontaneous. Anything that would ease this built up urge I had. It was my human qualities screaming to be acknowledged, pulling at the back of my senses, and dancing into the folds of my heart.

There was often such a struggle, between human, and demon instincts. Carefree and emotional vs. meticulous and astute. Often the two overlapped, but I was always stuck between the two mediums. Never happy one way or the other.

It's a struggle that no one knows about. Only two people in all the three worlds have even had a glimpse of myself in such a resolute state while purging myself of the overwhelming instincts that flood me, but neither, I hope, have taken the time to ponder on it much. I'd prefer it to go unnoticed.

Right now I could use one of them.

Under my breath comes a melodious tune. A little ditty I learned when I was young. It raises my spirits a bit, and I search out the ki of a certain detective. He is around the arcade a few blocks over, and I purposely walk the long way home just so I'll 'bump' into him.

I'm smiling more than usual. More emotions splay out on my features, and I do nothing to stop them. Right now I want to give into myself, and be completely human. I don't like this particular area, but all the street punks leave me alone. They saw me with Yusuke once, and never made the mistake to mess with me, although once in a while some hot shot gets an idea.

"Kurama!" Just as anticipated I hear his voice call to me from across the street. I blink and turn his direction with a fake look of surprise.

He jogs over the crosswalk and starts walking down the sidewalk with me. He's wearing his usual green school uniform, and his hair is slicked back with only a few trouble strands hanging loose. I wish he'd leave it natural…he looks cuter that way.

"What are you doing around here?"

"I'm just walking home." I steal a glance his direction. He just kicks a stone into the gutter. So I bluntly ask, "Do you want to have dinner with me and my mother?"

"I don't know. I wouldn't want to annoy her or anything. I'm not the most popular guy around here you know."

My smile widens. "Don't be ridiculous Yusuke. My mom loves when I invite you over. It makes her day to meet my 'elusive' friends." She is always worried that I don't socialize enough.

"Well in that case I guess I could!" We finish walking the rest of the way to my house. The air is already growing chillier, and the rain from a few nights ago seems to be on its way back. Huge clouds hang in the sky, but have yet to release a single drop.

"Shuuichi?" I shut and lock the door behind us as we enter. I remove my shoes, and Yusuke follows suit.

"Yes mother, I'm home." I continue down the hall, and into the kitchen where she is already busy preparing dinner. "I hope you don't mind but I invited Yusuke over for dinner."

"Oh! What a wonderful surprise. No, I love to have Yusuke over. Such a nice boy." She smiles sweetly at him, and I can't help but give him a 'I told you' look.

"Do you need any help?" I'm trying to be polite, but with all this tension swelling under my skin, and causing my brain to short circuit I really just want to go to my room.

"No, That's alright."

Without any further words I climb the stairs and enter my room. A soft sigh rides my lips as I drop my heavy book bag on the floor with a thud. They don't tell you how large the text books will get when you start taking those advanced classes…

"So." Yusuke plops down on the floor next to my bed. Right away he starts fiddling with things on my nightstand. Its a pet peeve of mine, but for the preservation of his happy mood I don't reprimand him. "What'da want to do?"

"We haven't had a case since the tournament, anything interesting happen you'd like to talk about?" Yes it has been a while since he's been over hasn't it? Perhaps that is why I am so impatient, or is that my teenage hormones coming out to plague me?

I rest my back on a few pillow propped at the head of my bead. I can't see his face, but I can hear him alright. "Not much. Just the usual. School sucks, mom and Keiko yapping at me about being 'lazy'."

He leans his head back, and glances up trying to catch my reaction, but I know I'm out of view. "Your uniform...did you attempt to attend school today?"

"Naw. Just had it on, but you know Keiko." He runs his hand through his hair dislodging more strands. They fall over his face giving him the pouting puppy look. "She tries to drag me to that hellhole any chance she gets."

"Hm...that's unfortunate. I'm sure she means well." I slide over to the edge of the bed so I'm sitting directly behind him.

"She's been on my ass a lot lately." He sounds frustrated, and I can almost feel his muscles all tensed up, so I drop my fingers lightly on his shoulders, and gently rub the warm skin held beneath his shirt. He relaxes right away under my touch, causing a smirk to grace my lips.

"Responsibilities weighing you down?" I rest my chin on his shoulder.

"Ch." He turns to look at me, and our faces are a mere inch apart. "Oh I get it." He chuckles light-heartedly, and closes the gap.

The kiss never deepens, but is kept simple and teasing. This is our silent agreement. I am able to let out my natural human tension, while he gets a moment of rebellion. Keiko...he is bound to her. Whether he feels indebted, or just the fact that he cares so much about her, he would never completely cheat on her. Not even with me. A pity really.

No...but his spirit is restless, and his burning fire would dwindle without a moment of freedom. So you see we are mutually using each other. A fact that does not disturb me.

I pull him up onto the bed with me, and we meld together, mildly offering warm touches. Nothing is promised in our trailing lips. We will never cross the barrier that I would with others, but that isn't what I need right now anyway. Nor what he needs.

Rain sprays my window pane, droplets trickling down, catching others and forcing them to fall with them. Like committing suicide but being afraid to go alone...

The morbid thought comes at the same time as my mother's call, and all at once I know I've spent the urge that brought this whole plan into fruition in the first place.

We pull apart, smiles swollen, and head downstairs for dinner. It may be that things feel grander when you quit thinking about tomorrow, but now that I'm falling back into my in-between place a dim gloom is numbing my finger tips. It is like swinging one way or the other brings me to my high points, but just in the middle is where I'm lost. It is where I'm the most true to myself, but also the least sure.

Yusuke declines the offer to stay the night just like usual, and I help my mother clear the table. I decide to join her and watch television instead of leaving her alone to do so. No matter how I prefer to be in my room at the moment, her happiness comes first. She gets so sad when she is alone...another reason I hate lying to her about our missions.

---

"You should invite your friends over more Shuuichi." She is yawning, and I know that going to bed is finally entering her mind. She switches the television off.

I smile gently. She is the most loving person I've ever met, evidently so if she was able to shape the legendary Youko Kurama into a model citizen. Maybe I should make a few new friends just to please her. Although the thought is positive I know I'll never do it.

I could never identify with human children with the exception of Yusuke or Kuwabara. I'm not that close to Kuwabara...Hiei is actually the closest friend I have, but he is not a suitable acquaintance to bring by. Hiei would loathe the idea, and I would not force him into it.

"Dear I think I'm going to head in for the night." I stand up, and hug her.

"Goodnight mother."

"You too Shuuichi. Don't stay up too late, even if it is the weekend."

I wait standing in the living room before I hear her bedroom door shut. Again I ascend the stairs, and am not shocked when I see a water-logged, cloaked, figure standing by my window when I reach my room.

"Hello Hiei." He only grunts in reply. He is standing against the closed window the dark fabric of his outfit still dripping onto my carpet. "Have you been waiting long?"

He shifts uncomfortably, and keeps his lazy gaze at the downpour outside. "Its bad enough you act like a ningen, but to consort with one..."

At first I don't respond, straightening up my room, and changing into a more comfortable outfit; sweat pants and no shirt. Modesty is slim between demons, and Hiei takes this as the signal to change also and strips himself bare of his clinging clothes. He leaves his pants on in the hopes that the thin fabric will dry quickly with his body heat.

Resting my back on the same bed that Yusuke and I shared earlier, I can smell his scent rather strongly, and I grin mischievously. I pick up our conversation where it left off like it never paused. Hiei is the type to still follow. "Why Hiei, I never knew you to be a voyeur."

With Hiei everything is so black and white. There are few shades in-between, and once he comes to a certain conclusion his opinion never budges...or at least publicly. I know of his respect of Yusuke despite his revulsion of the human species. Sometimes his strict beliefs can create quite a few contradictions.

"I'm not in the mood for your play Kurama, just a dry place to stay." Oh, so touchy. However I know that the only reason he watched us instead of just coming in, is that he is too proud to admit that he'd seek shelter here, even if that means waiting an hour or two in the rain.

"Fine." I lay agitatedly on my bed, not in the mood to sleep just yet. I'd like to talk to one of my own kind, but Hiei isn't the most responsive demon. I must say I've had better company.

"Do you think of home often?" I try to strike up conversation anyway.

He sighs dramatically, resigning himself to the philosophical talks I sometimes force him into. Its not that he lacks the intelligence to carry one out, but rather a lack of interest.

"Every second I'm forced to inhale this tainted air that the weak masses breathe. Every weak fool I see, I wish I was away from this miserable excuse for a world." Cruel and blunt. Definitely Hiei.

"I...miss its bruised skies, and vast forests. Here I feel claustrophobic at times. Do you feel that way?"

"Hn."

"Sixteen years...do you think anything has changed?" Its a stupid question. While Ningenkai might advance quickly, life spans are shorter here too. In Maikai demons live long with little to no change in their ways. They adapt, yes, but do nothing to change the ways of society.

"No."

"But really what kind of life did we leave behind? Is it any better than this one?" I wouldn't know for sure about what he left...to get him to speak of his past is like pulling teeth. But I've forced enough.

"Of course it was better. _We_ aren't meant to be here kitsune." Never a truer statement, yet my soul is bound here. Maybe at some point that bond will die along with all my loved ones that live here.

"I'll admit...I miss some of the freedom my old life presented." He scoffs. Now I notice he's moved to the floor where Yusuke sat.

"Having the power to disregard the law? Or do you miss your bed partners?"

Teasingly I sit up, and run my hands down either side of his chest, a frown marring my features. "You of all people should know better than to look down on my lifestyle."

"Stop." He brushes away my hands irritated. "I'm not your toy."

"I never said you were. You're a friend."

Frustrating I tell you. Unless you catch him in the right mood...its hopeless. If I was in my Youko form he could never resist me...or at least he'd be the first to do so. Sadly I've yet to learn how to transform at will.

"I was powerful there. A somebody. but I suppose it doesn't matter, things went foul towards the end." I don't elaborate, and he doesn't ask. "Even if I didn't want to go back it would be nice to visit..."

"Koenma isn't a fool enough to allow us through a portal for a 'visit'." His tone is bored with the conversation.

"If it wasn't for the barriers they have then I wouldn't pay head to his opinion." I think my little bit of defiance makes him happy. He doesn't like the fact that I'm so compliant about working for the spirit world.

"Do me a favor and shut up," That's his way of saying that he is tired.

"I don't want to sleep."

He doesn't catch the hint. Either that or he is blatantly ignoring me. I stretch sensuously, and wait, my eyes gleaming. He must feel them burning a hole through the back of his head.

"Hn." My ego could be entirely crushed with such a uninterested reply to my silent request. But I'm patient, and its not like I haven't had to pursue him before. I need to submerse myself in the feel of another demon- a connection to home, and he needs to relax a little.

My hand drums across my stomach a little, and I smile seductively. I could be at this all day, but I resist the urge to just pounce on him. He doesn't like that much from experience.

"A youko's expertise: seduction."

"Come." I beckon him to join me on my bed, but he hesitates briefly.

"Same rules as last time...and this is mentioned to no one."

I nod. Him and his rules...He is too picky to make the experience truly enjoyable, but enough to leave you satisfied, and that is the objective.

I was surprised when we first came together. I'm not certain as too his exact age but he's yet to reach his first century, young for a demon, practically a child. If demons were bound to the same morals as humans, a sexual relationship would be out of the question, but of course we aren't.

Sex is common, a tool to get what you want, always casual. A weapon if you will, that everyone possesses, Hiei not being an exception. He isn't as experienced and sensual as some of my previous partners, but rough.

His deep touches are almost painful, arousing my most basic of instincts, bringing low growls to leave our throats. We bite each other hard enough to draw blood, but lost in a haze, I can barely feel the pain that will set in later.

Our tempo makes me breathe hard, sweat rolling over our muscles, to glisten in the moonlight. My nails dig into the flesh of his back as we move faster.

Circumstances made this work, but it always rings hollow. The animalistic feelings that shut out all other thoughts is nothing more than skin deep. Usually this is the norm for a promiscuous demon such as a youko. But there was a time.

A time when things felt different. Even now...when my mind is blank with white pleasure, I can still remember, and it hurts.

AN: Ok so second chapter finally complete. (actually this has been on my computer for a while...I'm just really lzy.) This is turning out to be harder than I thought. I keep wanting them to say something, but it wouldn't be in character for them to do so. ACK! Also I keep thinking about changing to third person. Its either third or first person in...one of two people's point of view. What do you guys think?

I want to stab myself! My life is really hectic right now, and the stress is killing me. My move has just settled in, but I'm doing all these events this month, and my annoying aunt from California is coming... Anyway it will be taking me five million years between updates now, because I'm focusing more on my art. I just got into Charcoal...and I'm in love! I'm actually pretty good if anyone wants to check out my deviant art account. I'll be posting my two favoritest charcoals today!

For lack of time... I'll just have to say thankyou by name instead of replying... So sorry. I'll do it next time! Promise!

(1) In Japan students often go to school six days a week instead of five, and they often are in school until about four o'clock.

Thank you to…

lazy fat kitsune

kikira-san (the nicest review Ive gotten. Thanks!)

kurama-sweethart (miss you)

ame-tennyo AKA Hyena Frog

darksaphire (wow such a deep thinker)


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